FanPost

Cheap options at Center....

Options at Center examined what was available to the Celtics if they decided to commit the max to a Center. The clear winner in the poll so far has been Nikola Vucevic. Who is the best rebounder available-- not sure how he fit into Brad Stevens switch on everything defense-- but he is at the least an exceptionally good center who is five years younger than Horford.

IF the Celtics renounce Terry Rozier, they will have $34,000,000.00 to spend against the cap. That would likely be enough for the Celtics to offer Vucevic more than any other team besides the Knicks, Nets and Orlando.

There seems to be a huge appetite to go out and sign a point guard. This makes very little sense to me for two reasons.

  1. Why the hell did Boston just burn two draft picks (albeit 2nd rounders) on point guards.
  2. The 2020 draft looks to be full of point guards. The Celtics may have three first round picks in that draft.
On the other hand-- there are a few reasons you may not want to commit a ton of money to Vucevic. There are a few cheap options out there the Celtics may want to consider.

Nerlens Noel
OK. Now that you got your groan out of your system. First-- he likely will be available. He has a player option for 1.5 million, he will reject it. I believe OKC is capped on how much more they can offer him.

Yes- he did blow up in Philly and Dallas. But he had a damn good year last year. His per 36 numbers are pretty nice. 12.9 points per 36, 11.1 rebounds, 3.9 blocks. He would be an upgrade over Daniel Theis, although he likely would need to get more money. Essentially it would be like the Celtics traded-
  • Aron Baynes, the 24th pick in the draft and Daniel Theis
  • Nerlens Noel and Milwaukee's first pick.
He is a bit undersized at 6-9. His scoring and rebounds have improved each of his first 4 years in the league.

Ed Davis
A rebounding machine. Davis averaged 14+ and 17+ rebounds per 36 minutes last year. He was signed for $4,449,000-- by Brooklyn. I am not sure how much more they can pay him.

Dewayne Dedmon
Coming off the two best years of his career in Atlanta. At 29 he should be at his prime and will likely be seeking more than the $7,050,000.00 he was paid last year. Which kind of lifts him over the bargain category.

Vincent Poirier
25 year old, 6-11 235 French center. He had two years in the NBA summer league where he put up awful numbers. His YouTube tapes are little more than a series of dunks and alley-oops-- AKA plays rarely made against NBA talent. But he has both the size and the athleticism to complete in the league.

Tacko Fall
The Celtics signed Fall to a Summer League contract. He has insane height and length. His standing reach is two inches above the rim. There are alot of things he can not do-- shoot free throws and switch on defense. But, he is an absolute monster around the rim-- on offense and defense.

With good coaching and management he has the chance to put up Bol like numbers- 10 years, 14 minutes, 5 rebounds and 3+ blocks a game.

Guerschon Yabusele
538 Player Projection. I do not know if the Celtics are as impatient with Yabusele as it seems most of their fans are. The former 16th pick in the draft has had good games and bad games. His success everywhere except the NBA frustrates. There is both positives and negatives in developing Yabusele.
POSITIVE- His game compliments Robert Williams very well.
NEGATIVE- Every minute of playing time given to Yabusele is a minute take from Grant Williams.

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